


Wielding Words

by Kainorian



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: Angst, Break Up, Drama, F/F, Hurt, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-11
Updated: 2017-03-11
Packaged: 2018-10-02 19:05:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,079
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10225043
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kainorian/pseuds/Kainorian
Summary: Back when she was little, her grandmother used to tell her that you should never show your weakness to the enemy if you didn't want to get crushed. And if you asked Opal about the power of written words, she'd tell you that they can have an incredible influence on you. But on the other side, she would have never imagined that spoken words could hold even more weight and could be used as a weapon. Even more so, that she would be the one to wield it.





	

Opal Beifong was one of the most notable members of the new Air Nation and had a well-earned reputation of being one of the fiercest, most devoted and most determined recruits, but right now, she was anything but that. In fact, she had a hard time with maintaining her composure and not break out in a crying mess. On a usual day to day basis she could keep herself in check just fine. Growing up in a family with four brothers and having a tough aunt had its benefits after all. Back when she was little, her grandmother, whom she only met twice, used to tell her that you should never show your weakness to the enemy if you didn't want to get crushed. Opal took her word for it, not only because Toph Beifong was one of the most renowned people of her time, but also because there was some merit to it. Whenever she'd be engaged in a fight and would need to confront her opponent, she'd do just that. Build a mask around herself to protect herself. Years of buried anger of being treated as a little fragile girl would surge their way forward if an enemy would make the move to strike, and that's when she'd strike back without hesitation.

Except for this time. Opal didn't know why exactly, but something in her head made her.. hesitate. This wasn't her enemy, or at least, that's what she thought. Besides being gifted with airbending and a kind-hearted nature, Opal also was a very well-read girl. Although the moment she received her new powers everything changed, reading was something that stayed from her early life. So, if you asked her about the power of written words, she'd tell you that they can have an incredible influence on you, but Opal would have never imagined that spoken words could hold even more weight.

Angry and vibrant thoughts were rushing through her mind, and she didn't know if she could take all of it for much longer. Questions. Questions that made her wonder and think back to a time when everything had been fine. ' _Where did all of it go wrong?_ ', ' _Why?_ ', ' _Am I not good enough? Was I ever?_ ' She knew it was pointless to ask herself all this, but she just had to know. Had to know why and how one of the best and most secure things in her life was suddenly shattering into little broken pieces in front of her very eyes.

Yes, she was fierce and composed most of the time, but if someone once broke through her shell, she was only an insecure and emotional wreck.

Just like right now.

She could feel the sting of the hot tears that were threatening to spill from her eyes. In a weak attempt to fight them back, she choked “So you're breaking up with me?“

Desperate not to let the tears fall, she tried to force them back, blinking vigorously. She hated being vulnerable like this. It was only an evidence of how weak she was and that she was an easy target for anyone who wanted to harm her. The worst of all were the relentless thoughts that were flooding her mind.

 

_Don't cry. Not in front of her. You can cry later._

 

_Alone._

 

_When she's not there anymore. Don't let her see you're weak._

 

The girl in front of her, however, kept a straight face and remained silent, her stoic brown eyes seemingly boring into Opal's soul.

 

_No. She can't do this. She can't. Why would she? There's no reason for why she would do it..._

 

The tears were starting to consume her, her balled fists beginning to shake at her sides.

“ _Why?_ ” she managed to choke out again, her throat hoarse now, though she hadn't really spoken a lot until now. But for some reason, it was already aching and her head began to hurt.

 

_'Why?'_

 

_'What did I ever do to you?'_

 

Anger and sadness were raging inside her, and she didn't know which one of them to give the upper hand. Anger because of betrayal, anger for being hurt, anger for thinking that it would work, that they would stand a chance together, for being so naive. Sadness because of playing with her feelings, because of the realization of hard reality, that their relationship would be over, and sad for being so weak.

Suddenly, the girl's unreadable face in front of her changed into one of rue. “It's not your fault, Opal. We never should have come together in the first place. It was a mistake.”

Words are more powerful than you could ever imagine, and in the end, they can both shatter and wake something inside of you. In Opal's case, it released pure anger.

“You can't be serious,” she spat. “After everything we've been through, you want to set things, _us_ , to an end?”

\- “Opal, please, it's not like you think it is. I can explain-”

But her words were soon cut off by the airbender. “Right. Explain _what_? That you suddenly want to break things off because you're too afraid of what's going to happen once people find out? Or because you suddenly think I'm not good enough for you anymore?”

The hurt on the airbending master's face made her pause. Had she gone too far? Could she justify her words with her own feelings? She didn't know, but she did know that lashing out at her like that wouldn't do anyone any good and that she wouldn't be much better than her. It was a lost cause.

She let out a deep sigh, crossing her arms and giving her a stern look, willing to give the girl she had fallen in love with a chance to explain herself. “Fine. Whatever it is you think you need to tell me, do it.”

Thankful, the master smiled thinly. She knew that what she did was unforgivable and that there probably wasn't a lot she could save anymore, but Opal at least deserved an explanation. That was the least she could do.

Taking a deep breath, Jinora began to speak, careful in how to choose the right words.

“Look, I know that I hurt your feelings, and that there's possibly nothing I could ever do to make things up to you, but that doesn't mean I won't try to.” She looked up to the Beifong who was still eyeing her stoically.

She continued, knowing that the woman valued honesty above all else, with the hopes that the woman might, just might, understand and reconsider everything. “I do like you, Opal. A lot. But I.. just don't think that we should have a relationship. You see, with the Air Nation still growing and all, both of us are too caught up in our jobs to spend time with each other. That doesn't mean, however, that we still can't be friends. So, if you'd be up for that, I'm here,” she finished, looking hopefully at her.

But Opal couldn't bring herself to care in that moment. “So what? So you're only breaking up with me because of your duty to the Air Nation?” she cried out, spreading out her arms. “Only because we are too busy sometimes doesn't mean that we can't be together. How do you think Korra and Asami do it all the time? They're the Avatar and the leading CEO of a world-known company, basically two of the busiest people in the world, but they still manage to make their relationship work. If they can do it, so can we.”

The airbender looked down. “I know.. But, I don't think I'm ready for a committed relationship just yet. As the second in command and with Dad's growing age, the Air Nation needs me.. I.. think it'd be better if we waited.”

Opal scoffed. “So that's what this is about. Basically, you're dumping me because the Air Nation is more important to you than me,” she shook her head. “You know, I kind of expected more from you. But that you'd actually do this because of such a pointless reason is just ridiculous. If you think that we are too busy to even see each other, how do you think that we can still be friends?”

Jinora bit her lip. Like it or not, but she had a point. In her hopeful 14-year-old head she'd hoped that the woman wouldn't touch on it, but she knew that it was just wishful thinking. If she was being honest with herself, she didn't really know why she was breaking up with her either. She had meant it when she said that she liked the older girl. Maybe Opal was right, and she was just afraid of the consequences and the fact that she was dating someone of the same gender, something that was unheard of as far as she knew. Sure, they weren't the only ones who were a couple of the same gender, and she tried to push the thought aside when they had first begun dating, but regardless of what she tried, they kept coming back to her. It just felt.. _strange_ to her.

Growing up, she always believed to have interests in boys only, though apparently that wasn't the case or maybe that was because she just hadn't met the right one yet.

Although most of the new recruits were male, there wasn't one that had really struck her. The same went for the female members, and she never really had felt anything particular for women or girls around her, but that wasn't until the day she met Opal after her arrival at the Northern Air Temple.

She didn't really know why, but whenever she'd see the girl, a strange feeling would make itself present in her stomach, and for some reason, she had a really hard time trying to cover her nervousness around her. Usually she wasn't that shy around strangers, or nervous for that part, but Opal had been extremely open and friendly to her, which had made things a lot easier. And soon, the tension settled down and both of them would begin to spend time together more frequently. Although she didn't really know the meaning of her feelings back then, Jinora believed to have found a new friend, eager about their new friendship, which, over time, would develop into a relationship.

She was well aware that her family always expressed their unmeasurable love and support for her and her siblings, and she knew that they would support her in this, but she wasn't sure if that's what she needed right now.

Was she really in need of a relationship just yet? She knew that her grandmother had been her age when she began a relationship with her grandfather, who had been even younger from a biological standpoint back then, but what did that mean for her?

Did she _want_ it? A part of her did, but there was also the other part that told her to focus on her responsibilities, and she didn't know which part of her was bigger. At first it seemed like the right thing to do, but now, the more she was thinking about it, the less she was sure about her decision. Maybe she needed some advice, but there was still the elephant koi in the room.

Her eyes found their way to Opal's, the tension in her face almost palpable. However, before Jinora could say something, the woman cut her off.

“You know what? Forget it. If you don't want to fight for us, it was doomed to fail from the start anyway.”

And before the airbending master could control what was happening, she turned her back on her, storming off into the opposite direction, without turning around again. Jinora watched her retreating inside, letting out a long sigh.

“Hey, what's wrong?”

She turned her head around to find Kai looking worriedly at her. She sighed.

“I suppose it's me.”

 

Back when she was little, her grandmother used to tell her that you should never show your weakness to the enemy if you didn't want to get crushed. And if you asked Opal about the power of written words, she'd tell you that they can have an incredible influence on you. But on the other side, she would have never imagined that spoken words could hold even more weight and could be used as a weapon. Even more so, that she would be the one to wield it.

 

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Had this one laying around for a while and finally could bring myself to write it out. After all the fluff I felt the need to post something angsty. >:D
> 
> Expect more angst in the future.
> 
> ~ Kainorian


End file.
